2 dead in Lonoke County incident, 1 shot after police arriveENGLAND (AP) — Arkansas State Police say a domestic incident at England in Lonoke County has left two people dead, including one person shot after local police arrived. State police spokesman Bill Sadler said troopers are investigating Friday's shooting at the request of the England Police Department. He said in a statement that England police responded to a domestic disturbance involving two men and that when officers arrived they found an ar...

Bond hearingsThe following individuals appeared during felony bond hearings Friday at the Pope County Detention Center. Their names, ages, anticipated charges and bond amounts are listed. If charged, they will appear Feb. 9 in Circuit Court. • Stanley Havner, 49, two counts of delivering a controlled substance — $20,000. Havner sold a total of approximately 4 grams of methamphetamine on two occasions over the past six months to a confidential informant wor...

Music minister accused of sexual assaultDANVILLE — A Yell County music minister was arrested Sunday on suspicion of second-degree sexual assault. Timothy E. Patton, 55, who has been the minister of music at the Danville First Baptist Church for nine years, was also accused of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and purchasing alcohol for a minor, which are misdemeanors. Logan Ferguson, Danville First Baptist Church youth pastor, declined to comment on the status of Patton's e...

Bond hearingsThe following individuals appeared during felony bond hearings Wednesday at the Pope County Detention Center. Their names, ages, anticipated charges and bond amounts are listed. If charged, they will appear Feb. 9 in Circuit Court. • Joshua Brown, 28, aggravated assault — $7,500. Officers responded to a domestic disturbance call shortly before 1:30 p.m. Tuesday and found Brown's estranged wife with red marks on her throat, according to a polic...

Death of woman in Harrison fire investigated as homicide HARRISON (AP) — Police in Harrison say the death of a woman whose body found following a house fire is being investigated as a homicide. Police Chief Paul Woodruff told the Harrison Daily Times (http://bit.ly/14vd3jU ) that the woman was found dead and a child injured in the fire Tuesday. The woman's name and a suspected cause of her death were not released. The nature of the child's injuries also were not released.

Theft suspect arrestedThe Russellville Police Department on Wednesday arrested a man suspected in several thefts of construction materials. The suspect was identified through "numerous tips" the department received from the public. "The Russellville police would like to send out a special thanks to our community and media for their overwhelming response to this crime," Drew Latch, public information officer, said. The suspect, Pablo Cortez, has been charged with fe...

Talkington murder trial setCLARKSVILLE — Jury selection in the murder trial of a Pope County man accused of killing his cousin in Knoxville is scheduled to begin Jan. 30, according to the Johnson County Circuit Court. Nathaniel Talkington, 26, was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the Nov. 1 death of his 23-year-old cousin, Caleb. Talkington was arrested Nov. 5 in Morrilton when officers were notified of an arrest warrant on him during a traffic stop. ...

Leaders view new prison as last option for overcrowding LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas legislative leaders say they view building a new $100 million prison as the last option for addressing the overcrowding of state inmates in local jails around the state and would prefer to look at other alternatives first. Incoming House Speaker Jeremy Gillam and Senate President Jonathan Dismang said Tuesday they're not finding support among lawmakers for the 1,000-bed prison officials say they need to ease the ove...

Grandfather, girlfriend killed in SW Missouri; baby safe CASSVILLE, Mo. (AP) — A Springdale man is jailed after the mother of his 2-year-old daughter and her grandfather died in a shooting in southwest Missouri. The girl was found at the suspect's mother's home in Arkansas hours after she was taken Monday from the victims' home just north of Washburn, Missouri. Christopher Paschall, 37, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Casey Brace, 29. She and her grandfather, Herb Townsend, 76, w...

Police seek help identifying theft suspectThe Russellville Police Department (RPD) is seeking the public's help to identify a theft suspect. This man is suspected in several felony thefts of construction materials in the Russellville area. Anyone with information is asked to call police at 968-3232 or the Silent Tip Line at (479) 967-2221.

Mental evaluation delays Floyd trialDANVILLE — Brooke Floyd's manslaughter trial, which was scheduled to begin Monday, was delayed while the court awaits the outcome of her mental evaluation. The Yell County Prosecuting Attorney's Office said Floyd's pretrial was continued until March 5 and jury selection in her trial was tentatively scheduled for March 19. Floyd, 21, was charged with manslaughter in the July death of her 10-month-old son, Harper. She is represented by William O...

Dispute between father, son turns deadly PINE BLUFF (AP) — Authorities in Jefferson County say a dispute between a father and son has resulted in the county's first homicide of 2015. Sheriff's office officials say deputies responded to a 911 call on Friday about a report of a domestic disturbance in White Hall between the father, 73-year-old Claude Oakley, and his son, 48-year-old Claude Bryan Oakley. The sheriff's office says investigators arrested Claude Oakley for the death of his...

Bond hearingsThe following individual appeared during felony bond hearings Wednesday at the Pope County Detention Center. Her name, age, anticipated charge and bond amount are listed. If charged, she will appear Feb. 9 in Circuit Court. • Paige Chisum, 27, forgery — $5,000. Chisum was arrested this week in connection with checks stolen in September, according to a police report. Chisum reportedly cashed a $300 stolen check at a local store. District Judge ...

Father of murder victim tries to attack killer MENA (AP) — The father of a 12-year-old girl who was killed in 1999 was arrested after trying to attack the girl's convicted killer during a court hearing. The Times Record reported Greg Brewer, 46, was charged with three misdemeanor counts after trying to attack Karl Douglas Roberts during a competency hearing on Monday in Polk County Circuit Court. Roberts was convicted of capital murder in 2000 and sentenced to death for the strangulation o...

Third murder suspect in custodyA third suspect in the 2009 killing of Clint Brown will be charged next week with first-degree murder, according to a Pope County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) news release. Leslie Koster, 25, was interviewed Monday at the women's unit of the Southeast Arkansas Community Corrections Center in Pine Bluff in connection with the killing. Koster allegedly confessed to investigators Lt. Stephen Pack and Chris Ridenhour during the interview that she parti...

Suspected drug runner stopped short in Pope CountyA Georgia man was arrested over the weekend in Pope County on suspicion of transporting drugs from California to Georgia. Arkansas State Police troopers stopped Joel Purnell, 46, of Forest Park, Ga., shortly after 5 p.m. Sunday near the 90 mile marker on Interstate 40 East for speeding, according to a police report. Officers noted Purnell was nervous and told them "an implausible travel story" before allegedly admitting to having a gun and a "...

NYC officer mourned at funeral as tensions linger NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of police officers from across the nation packed a church and spilled onto streets Saturday to honor Officer Rafael Ramos as a devoted family man, aspiring chaplain and hero, though an air of unrest surrounding his ambush shooting was not completely pushed aside. While mourners inside the church applauded politely as Mayor Bill de Blasio spoke, hundreds of officers outside turned their backs on him in a show of disres...

Skull found near Ogden has possible bullet holes OGDEN (AP) — The Little River County sheriff says a skull found by a girl at a bus stop has two holes in the back of it that could be from gunshots. "One hole in the skull appears to be created by a gunshot, and there is an overlapping hole that shows the person was shot twice. It looks execution-style. It's still a mystery who did it," Sheriff Gary Gregory told the Texarkana Gazette. The skull and bones found nearby were previously identified...